Hatchet (2006) is billed as an homage to some of the most horrifically wonderful horror movies of the 70’s and 80’s. But how do the scares compare to some of the classics? Can the excessively gruesome deaths bring a heart-rate to its boiling point, or will the comedy cool our subject off?

**FearScale reports on Heart-Rate monitoring but at times may take into account story structure, acting or plot when compiling the following results**

Test Subject: Leah

Age : 35

Gender: Female

Resting HR: 65bpm

Fears: Spiders

ANALYSIS:

The film begins with a jolt in traditional horror form causing a minor fluctuation in our subject. But soon after the numbers decrease as the movie takes time to establish its characters, introducing fun banter, cheesy dialogue, and some added nakedness. (After all they are in New Orleans during Mardi Gras). Not until we pass the thirty minute mark do we finally see our subject’s heart-rate begin to show life even though it drops off quickly each time. What we can gather from these readings is that the film is relying heavily on jump scares rather than building suspense for most of the middle build.

Leading into the climax of the film our subject’s heart-rate steadily escalates reaching a new baseline in the high 70’s/low 80bpm. Her peak HR comes during one of the more intense deaths (52:00) leaping to 91bpm.

There are also moments of laughter (01:15 for example) which tend to have an effect on our subject’s rising heart-rate at times surpassing some of the death scene numbers. What’s interesting to note is her heart-rate at the finale of the film. Where most of the films we’ve monitored had a significant drop-off into the credits, Hatchet delivers an impressive 82bpm straight through the last scene.

Watch as our subjects heart-rate climbs in real-time during an intense scene of the film.

CONCLUSION:

Our subject made it through most of the film without covering her eyes, even with the over-the-top gore during the kill scenes. Sadly, the fear calories burned were probably gained back by snacks and a good time. Hatchet provides strikingly similar results to the classics we have monitored. Mostly because Adam Green dips his director’s brush into the well of the 80’s slasher formula to create a respectful equivalent of the films he’s honoring. With Hatchet, he attempts to produce a new icon in the horror genre. While the twisted and deformed killer may force some viewers under their covers, the comedy tends to outweigh the scares. Which isn’t always a bad thing, in fact, we think it’s a fine how do you do.

Resting HR: 65bpm

Walking HR: 72-80bpm

Average HR during the film : 74.58bpm

Peak HR: 91bpm

Calories burned: 191